The present invention relates to the discovery, identification, and characterization of novel human polynucleotides encoding a protein that shares sequence similarity with mammalian semaphorin proteins. The invention encompasses the described polynucleotides, host cell expression systems, the encoded proteins, fusion proteins, polypeptides and peptides, antibodies to the encoded proteins and peptides, and genetically engineered animals that either lack or over express the disclosed polynucleotides, antagonists and agonists of the proteins, and other compounds that modulate the expression or activity of the proteins encoded by the disclosed polynucleotides that can be used for diagnosis, drug screening, clinical trial monitoring, the treatment of physiological disorders or diseases, and cosmetic or nutriceutical applications.
Semaphorins are members of a superfamily of structurally related proteins that have been associated with axon guidance. Their expression in non-neural tissues indicate that semaphorins can regulate biology in ways beyond axon guidance.
The present invention relates to the discovery, identification, and characterization of nucleotides that encode novel human proteins, and the corresponding amino acid sequences of these proteins. The novel human protein (NHP) described for the first time herein share structural similarity with mammalian semaphorins and particularly semaphorin G (SEQ ID NOS: 1-17) and semaphorin G (subclass 4) (SEQ ID NOS: 18-50).
The novel human nucleic acid sequences described herein, encode alternative proteins/open reading frames (ORFs) of 1049, 1093, 1034, 1078, 1151, 1136, 954, 939, 215, 496, 702, 697, 843, 838, 870, 865, 116, 397, 603, 598, 744, 739, 771, and 766 amino acids in length (see respectively SEQ ID NOS: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 19, 21, 23, 25, 27, 29, 31, 33, 35, 37, 39, 41, 43, 45, 47, and 49).
The invention also encompasses agonists and antagonists of the described NHPs, including small molecules, large molecules, mutant NHPs, or portions thereof, that compete with native NHP, peptides, and antibodies, as well as nucleotide sequences that can be used to inhibit the expression of the described NHPs (e.g., antisense and ribozyme molecules, and gene or regulatory sequence replacement constructs) or to enhance the expression of the described NHP polynucleotides (e.g., expression constructs that place the described polynucleotide under the control of a strong promoter system), and transgenic animals that express a NHP transgene, or xe2x80x9cknock-outsxe2x80x9d (which can be conditional) that do not express a functional NHP. Knock-out mice can be produced in several ways, one of which involves the use of mouse embryonic stem cells (xe2x80x9cES cellsxe2x80x9d) lines that contain gene trap mutations in a murine homolog of at least one of the described NHPs. When the unique NHP sequences described in SEQ ID NOS:1-50 are xe2x80x9cknocked-outxe2x80x9d they provide a method of identifying phenotypic expression of the particular gene as well as a method of assigning function to previously unknown genes. To this end, several gene trapped knockout ES cells have been generated in murine homologs of the described NHPs. Additionally, the unique NHP sequences described in SEQ ID NOS:1-50 are useful for the identification of coding sequence and the mapping a unique gene to a particular chromosome.
Further, the present invention also relates to processes for identifying compounds that modulate, i.e., act as agonists or antagonists, of NHP expression and/or NHP activity that utilize purified preparations of the described NHPs and/or NHP product, or cells expressing the same. Such compounds can be used as therapeutic agents for the treatment of any of a wide variety of symptoms associated with biological disorders or imbalances.
The Sequence Listing provides the sequences of the described NHP ORFs that encode the described NHP amino acid sequences. SEQ ID NO:17 and SEQ ID NO:50 describe full length NHP ORFs and flanking sequences.